Deborah Simpkin King Artistic Director and Founder
BUT WHO SHALL RETURN US OUR CHILDREN? -A Kipling Passion-
2017-2018 SEASON - WHEN THE WAR IS OVER
Saturday, November 11, 7:00pm St. John’s Lutheran Church, 81 Christopher St., NYC
Sunday, November 12, 5:00pm Church of the Immaculate Conception 30 N. Fullerton Ave., Montclair, NJ
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We thank the following for their generous commitments to our 2017-2018 Season Diamond Sponsors ($25,000+) Sponsors ($250+) Donors (up to $100) Marjorie Bunnell Charitable Trust Maria A. Basile Costco Warehouse Corporation Frank Borroto Maureen deBlasio Platinum Sponsors ($15,000+) Suzanne Block Glatt Amy Elise deJong Alexander Wentworth Pete Klosterman Jeff Flaster Seraphim ($7,500+) Sherry & Robert Kosinski Frank & Karen Hunter New Jersey State Council on the Arts Kevin & Sally Malanga Mary Lawler Richard Seeger Frances & Anthony Marsh Joseph Martin Roger & Mary Lou West Joyce Nestle Tom Myers Scott & Angel Pollack Nella Phillips Ember Angels ($5,000+) Amanda Regan Carol Quatrone Deborah Simpkin King Peggy Simpkin Betsy Sargent & Garry Watson ExxonMobil John T. Smith Kim Seltzer Gordon King Ilya Speranza & Andy Squire Elaine Terrell Cherubim ($2,500) Jose & Rowena Traverso Tully Cheng Svetlana Tzenova & Bojidar Tzenov In Memoriam—Bill Simpkin Prudential Financial Barbara G. Weiland Caroline L. Sargent Trinity and St. Philip’s Cathedral Patrons ($100+) Joel Biggers Guardian Angels ($1,000+) Anonymous Nicholas Cerrato AIG Matching Grants Program Ismael Aponte Christopher Greene Mark A. Aro The Bartol Charitable Foundation Laura Greenwald Gordon King Susan Baer & Warren Usdin Michele Butchko Tom Myers Columbia University— Wladimir & Anne Giszpenc Nella Phillips Alice M. Ditson Fund for Music Give With Liberty Arlene Pollack Andrew Jones Dorie Jefferson Caroline L. Sargent Alyson B. Navarro Sara & Vincent Livolsi Elaine Terrell Leslie M. Penny Angels ($500+) Elizabeth Rake Charles & Erica Appel Amanda Regan William & Christiana Carpenter Blane Shaw Nicholas Cerrato Donald & Karen Siegel Chris & Pamela Kyle Greene James Splond Laura Greenwald & David Strom Joseph Martin-Stowe Richard McAdams André Weker Morgan Stanley Peggy Yates Alison & Chris Self Amy Miles Ziebarth
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A message from Artistic Director and Founder, Dr. Deborah Simpkin King, PhD
Dear Music Lover, As we do every year, Ember singers have chosen a subject of pertinence on which to focus, and about which to sing throughout the year. It is our belief that the ability of the arts to reach beyond the mind, touching our very hearts and souls, provides us with a marvelous vehicle through which to heighten awareness of significant topics and, hopefully, bring them into expansive consideration.
The approach of the centennial anniversary of the World War I Armistice provides a particularly poignant opportunity in which to explore the many implications of military conflict. Veterans and their loved ones are, of course, central in our heart, minds and voices, and veterans will be afforded recognition in every concert.
Today, in the inaugural concert of the season we call When the War is Over, we look at the impact of wartime loss to a single family (that of Rudyard Kipling) – yet, by extension to all active military families. In March we will share music and poetry of all nations involved in the War [that was] to [have] end[ed] all Wars, underscoring the reality that blood spilled is a universal loss. And in May, we look at the disenfranchised (Black and Native American) soldier in WWI.
Preparation of this marvelous oratorio has challenged the musicians who are Ember not only musically and vocally, but emotionally, as well. It has taken us into the heart of one family’s heartrending journey. Our donning of lapel poppies throughout the season, and our gifting of them to veterans in our audiences, is one small expression of solidarity with those who give so very much. You have our admiration and gratitude.
The ability of the human spirit to remember, to learn, to heal, to reconcile . . . it is all of that and more about which we sing today through John Meuhleisen’s marvelous Kipling Passion: But who shall return us our children? Join us on the journey; gather with us following the concert. In service of meaningful Art,
P.S. – If you’ve not yet tapped into our brand new EmberChat podcast series, we encourage you to seek that out for some fascinating ongoing conversation surrounding issues of military engagement. Lots there for all of us to consider. You will find it at SoundCloud.com/emberchat.
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An Introduction and Overview But Who Shall Return Us Our Children? — A Kipling Passion (2017) John Muehleisen (born 1955)
“Incidentally, Armageddon begins.” Thus wrote Rudyard Kipling when Britain entered the First World War in August 1914. It is impossible to understate the effect that the War had on that nation. More than three-quarters of a million British died, largely in the trenches of Belgium and France. This accounted for fully two percent of the population of Great Britain. Nearly three times as many were wounded, many severely, some from amputations or shellshock—what we now call post-traumatic stress disorder. So many promising young men were slaughtered, and so many of the old regime were now dying or disillusioned. The course of British music, literature, and culture changed dramatically. Kipling demonstrates this shift aptly: he was very much of the old guard, and the death of his son at the Battle of Loos in September 1915 destroyed his world. The tale of Kipling and his family’s wartime woes inspired Seattle-based composer John Muehleisen while researching his Pietà, premiered in March 2012 by Choral Arts Northwest, conducted by Robert Bode. Pietà included an array of texts on the subject of mothers mourning their children; among the sources were writings of Kipling and his son, John. Yet after that premiere, Muehleisen and Bode knew that they were not done with Kipling yet. As early as January 2013, the composer began collecting source material for a much larger work dealing with the Kipling family and their personal tragedy. Bode and Choral Arts Northwest—along with co-commissioners Spire Chamber Ensemble and the Conservatory of Music and Dance of the University of Missouri – Kansas City—commissioned the result: But Who Shall Return Us Our Children?. By subtitling his oratorio “A Kipling Passion”, Muehleisen invites comparisons to Bach, whose eighteenth-century Passion music—recounting the final days and death of Jesus—remains the gold standard for large-scale choral writing. Muehleisen implicitly likens the suffering of fallen soldiers to that of Christ, a notion that Kipling himself had embraced. As with the Bach Passions, the principal soloists take on roles of specific characters: the father, Rudyard, bass-baritone; mother, Carrie, soprano; and son, John, tenor. Some choral singers emerge with smaller roles such as soldiers and nurses. The full choir often takes the role of Bach’s Evangelist, or of a Greek chorus, introducing the action with textual attributions or otherwise moving the story forward. There are also moments of turba chorus, when the choir interjects briefly in the role of a crowd. In Bach, the chorus may become an angry mob; in Muehleisen, a disillusioned English populace. Most commonly, the chorus functions as an everyman: observing, commenting, and deeply feeling. The instrumentation also suggests Bach, though modernized. The small orchestra consists of two woodwind players (one on flute, clarinet, and saxophone; the other on oboe and English horn), two brass players (trumpet and trombone), two percussionists, and a standard string quartet plus double bass. The percussion acts like a Baroque continuo, supporting the voices in narrative moments. Muehleisen largely associates the strings with Carrie, the military band of winds and percussion with Rudyard, and the full ensemble with John, as a symbolic merging of his parents. In John Kipling’s aria that begins Part 3, Muehleisen handles the instruments in a singularly Bach-like manner, scoring for solo voice, two solo winds, and the percussion continuo. Similarly, Carrie’s aria “Son”, her farewell to John as he heads off to war, is scored essentially for solo oboe and strings, a chaconne in the form of a modified da capo form. Even the oratorio’s macro organization nods to Bach: fifty-one self-contained movements grouped into seven main units. Those fifty-one sections use texts from many different sources, most of which are contemporary to the action of the story. Of course the poetry of Kipling is given center stage, including three of his most famous works: If—, his kindly advice to a young man entering adulthood, written two years before John’s birth; Recessional, written for Queen Victoria’s
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An Introduction and Overview - continued Diamond Jubilee; and selections from Epitaphs of the War. Muehleisen presents Kipling’s writings in a roughly chronological order; we hear their evolution from simplistic optimism to vehement propaganda to bitter objectivity. Thirteen other English poets of the era appear, including some who served as soldiers (Wilfred Owen, Siegfried Sassoon, Robert Nichols) or as nurses (Vera Brittain, Eva Dobell), plus members of the older generation (Thomas Hardy, Laurence Binyon). Less literary sources include diaries and letters written by Carrie, Rudyard, and John. There are news reports, a telegram, soldiers’ songs, a music-hall song, and even a song from the U.S. Civil War. The text of the lullaby that accompanies John’s birth was written by Tyler Griffin, a friend of the composer. In the final section, Muehleisen adds historical breadth with texts from the Bible, William Blake, Christina Rossetti, and Carl Sandburg. Muehleisen’s music benefits from several sources as well. At different moments he consciously imitates Anglican chant, Baroque recitative, Elgarian grand melody, and English folksong. He adapts Bach chorale harmonizations, largely from the Passions, and assigns them to new words, such as a poem by Wilfred Owen. Abide with me and other hymn tunes appear. And there are soldiers’ songs, military bugle calls, an English church-bell pattern, a Christmas carol, and a funeral march from Handel’s oratorio Saul. All of these influences comprise more than a mélange, as each serves a specific dramatic purpose. One of the ways Muehleisen links these disparate influences is by a rich collection of original musical motives. For example, one bass ostinato first heard in “Lullaby for John” is later expanded to symbolize the corruption of innocence. With John’s birth we first hear a motive for loss and farewell. This returns at various prominent moments, including John’s farewell to his mother: simultaneously a goodbye for John and a loss for Carrie. Another motive represents war. Instrumental elements heard during John’s final letter home return at his death. At every moment Muehleisen deftly balances original music with overt borrowings. The first sounds of the oratorio are a military call to attention and a procession. The text is Kipling’s Recessional, indicative of the fading away of the British Empire, written two months before John’s birth in 1897. The soloists are introduced not as their characters, but with lines that reveal their characters’ eventual plights. Muehleisen’s music here adapts the English hymn tune “Folkingham”, with which the poem became affiliated in the English Hymnal of 1906. The crucial line is “Lest we forget”—the concept of remembrance is key, presaging the oratorio’s final section. In Part One, we hear a glimpse of life in the Kipling household in the 1890s. John is born. Rudyard’s If— introduces a persistent, ominous drumbeat that will reappear. Part Two, “The Gathering Storm”, leaps us to 1914. War is declared, Rudyard writes jingoistic propaganda and riles the choir—that is, the English people—to a nationalistic frenzy. He helps John to gain a military commission, but wonders of the eventual cost of lost lives: “Who dies if England live?”. Supported by strings and chimes, Carrie worries about her soldier-son: “We all must […] live in the shadow of a hope that our boy will be the one to escape.” The heart of Muehleisen’s storm is the dramatic, dissonant choral lament, “The Young Men of the World”, a violent treatment of the “war” motive, which has steadily infected the entire score. Carrie tenderly bids John farewell. And so we proceed to the front in Part Three, “The Battle of Loos” (pronounced in English like “loss”). In a series of diversely scored numbers, soldiers sing of optimism, nostalgia, bravery, and hope. A quartet flippantly jokes about being bombed, gassed, and shelled in the trenches. At each step, Muehleisen’s chosen texts and his music gain richer depths. An orchestral churn depicts the soldiers’ nervousness and anticipation, and time is suspended for John’s inner monologue. Finally the battalion leaps “over the top” of the trench to attack. John is killed almost instantly amid crashing percussion. Matters turn more introspective, beginning with compassionate consideration of the shellshocked, who, then as now,
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An Introduction and Overview - continued often suicided. The chorus delivers to the Kiplings a telegram stating that John is “missing, presumed injured” in a cold, bureaucratic, dot-dot-dash recitative. Carrie, Rudyard, and the disgruntled choral populace express disgust at incompetent military leadership. In Part Four, “Lost and Found”, Carrie and Rudyard struggle to discover if John is missing, captured, or in fact dead. A sequence of letters and diary entries fills the passage of two years. Kipling’s poem A Nativity is given its historical context: Jesus’ mother held his crucified corpse, whereas Carrie and Rudyard had no such consolation. A solo baritone finally delivers the detailed truth, not sung, but with the harsher tones of speech. Amid Carrie’s reaction, the choir paints the scene. Rudyard wonders, without the comfort of music, how to move forward in a new world bought by the slaughtered. Somehow, the couple’s healing begins. Part Five, “Armistice and Aftermath”, focuses on the survivors’ struggles. The war ends amid the clanging of church bells, represented by chimes and vibraphone. Carrie’s diary makes it clear, however, that the end of the war is not the end of the story. Amid a Handel march traditionally played at British military funerals, John’s regiment returns home, many physically or mentally maimed. A trio of nurses sings with optimistic naivety of those suffering from shellshock. Rudyard delivers a speech to draw attention to returned soldiers with forgotten but enduring pains. The choir sings what the composer calls “a carefree, sardonic waltz” that signifies “the too-often cavalier attitude of society to the challenges of returning veterans.” We find that questions have pervaded the “Aftermath” poems: “Does it matter?”—“But who shall return us our children?”—“The Spirit of Pity whispered, ‘Why?’”. All questions cease for Carrie and Rudyard, as John is officially, finally, pronounced dead. “Reconciliation and Remembrance” are the challenges allotted to Part Six. Rudyard, Carrie, and the chorus of English mourners assemble, “grieving—grieving”, at the Cenotaph, a large monument to the unknown war dead, in the heart of London. A musical reconciliation transpires during Binyon’s “Ode of Remembrance”, as the motive that has heretofore been associated with loss transforms into that for remembrance. The inclusion of Carl Sandburg’s Grass adds universality and timelessness to the discussion: we could be considering any war in history. The texts of the final number are typical of those that Kipling penned or chose for gravestones in his capacity as a member of the War Graves Commission. The pervading notion is aloneness: John is alone, then Rudyard and Carrie are alone, separated in canon. Bit by bit, the chorus, divided into five groups, emerges, symbolizing a growing community of support, already hinted at earlier in The Cenotaph. Textual and musical fragments interweave richly in this final “Remembrance Tapestry”. We are fortunate that Muehleisen was not done with the Kiplings back in 2012. There is so much to learn from these stories of the past. The process is painful for us, but it was far more painful for those who first trod these paths. Let us remember the fallen. Let us remember the injured and the impaired. Let us remember the family, the friends, the lovers, the neighbors. Let us remember all. —Dr. Gary D. Cannon www.cannonesque.com © 2017 All rights reserved
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About the Composer Composer John Muehleisen is increasingly in demand for commissions and performances nationally and internationally, particularly from choral ensembles. His music has been described as “imaginatively harmonized…beautifully realized…and brilliantly crafted.” When Muehleisen was awarded Third Place for the 2013 American Prize in Professional Choral Composition, one of the judges wrote: “Lush, powerful, condensed, then expansive in continual ‘inhalations and exhalations of harmony’—all of this characterizes the masterful writing of composer John Muehleisen.” He has served as Composer-in-Residence for Opus 7 Vocal Ensemble almost continuously since 1996, as well as for the Dale Warland Singers (2003– 2004), and twice for Seattle/s Choral Arts Northwest (2011–2012 and 2016–2017). The last group commissioned John’s first concert-length oratorio, titled Pietà, which they premiered in March 2012 to instant critical acclaim. Pietà was subsequently chosen by Craig Hella Johnson to open Conspirare’s innovative week-long ComPassion festival in June of 2014, received its East Coast premiere in March 2015 by Schola Cantorum on Hudson, conducted by Deborah Simpkin King, and was also performed in 2016 by the St. Olaf Choir and Magnum Chorum, under the direction of Anton Armstrong, and most recently, by the Portland Symphonic Choir, conducted by Erick Lichte in Portland OR in October 2017. John’s second concert-length work, But Who Shall Return Us Our Children – A Kipling Passion was premiered in March 2017 and commissioned by a consortium of organizations, including Choral Arts NW, the Conservatory of Music and Dance at University of Missouri – Kansas City, Spire Chamber Ensemble, the South Bend Chamber Singers, and Ember Vocal Ensemble of Schola Cantorum on Hudson, which presents its East Coast premiere on this concert.
Muehleisen’s works have been performed throughout North America, Europe, and Asia by numerous choral ensembles, including Choral Chameleon, Incheon City Chorale, John Alexander Singers, and Yale Schola Cantorum. He has received commissions from numerous ensembles, including Conspirare, Dale Warland Singers, The Esoterics, Harvard Glee Club, Northwest Girlchoir, Seattle Girls’ Choir, Seattle Pro Musica, South Bend Chamber Singers, and Volti. More than 40 of his choral works have been recorded commercially, most recently by the John Alexander Singers, Volti, and Opus 7, which will soon release a full CD of world-premiere recordings of John’s choral works. His compositions have been featured at the Sixth World Choral Symposium; the 2007 NEA American Masterpieces Choral Festival in Austin, TX; at multiple regional and national ACDA conferences; and at the 2013 Chorus America Conference in Seattle. His work for women’s choir, Joy, was performed in Avery Fisher Hall by The Distinguished Concerts Singers International in March 2014, conducted by Hillary Apfelstadt.
John and Montana-based choral ensemble Dolce Canto—conducted by Peter Park—were awarded the 2014 Dale Warland Singers Commission Award co-sponsored by Chorus America and the American Composers Forum. The resulting work was a collaboration with renowned poet and librettist, Charles Anthony Silvestri. John is also the recipient of the Louisville Orchestra Orchestral Composition Competition Award. Commissions, performances, and recordings of his works have been supported by grants from the Alice M. Ditson Fund of Columbia University, America Music Center, Jerome Foundation, Meet the Composer, several grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, and New Music USA.
John holds a Master of Music in Composition from University of Washington, where he studied with William Bergsma, William O. Smith, and Diane Thome. During doctoral studies at Indiana University he studied composition with John Eaton, Eugene O’Brien, and Harvey Sollberger, and orchestration with Donald Erb, with minors in Music Theory and Instructional Systems Technology. He has participated in master classes and summer residency programs with Lukas
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Foss, Milton Babbitt, Yehudi Wyner, Earle Brown, and Bernard Rands. After a dual career in software and music, John is now a full-time composer, publisher, and educator. His choral works are published by Colla Voce, Santa Barbara Music Publishing, and Alliance Music Publications. Most of his works are self-published and are available through his website at www.johnmuehleisen.com. About the Soloists
Justin Beck, bass-baritone, (Rudyard Kipling) has had a varied career both as an opera and concert soloist as well as a choral singer. He studied music with a focus on vocal performance at the University of Texas at Austin, and Texas State University. He was a Young Artist at Austin Lyric Opera for two seasons singing roles in Gounod’s Faust, Puccini’s La fanciulla del West, and Verdi’s Rigoletto. He also spent two summers at the Aspen Music Festival in their opera theater center. Additional opera credits include three seasons with Opera Company of Middlebury in Vermont performing in Massenet’s Thaïs, Puccini’s La rondine, and Bizet’s The Pearl Fishers. Other favorite roles include Leporello in Mozart’s Don Giovanni, Dr. Falke and Frank in J. Strauss Jr.’s Die Fledermaus, both with Opera Manhattan. Mr. Beck’s Concert highlights include Handel’s Messiah with the Austin Symphony, Berlioz’s Requiem with the Carnegie Hall Festival Chorus under the baton of Robert Spano, Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony and Orff’s Carmina Burana with the National Chorale in Avery Fisher Hall, Stravinsky’s Oedipus Rex with the Bard Music Festival, and R. Strauss’s Feuersnot with the American Symphony Orchestra and Music Director Leon Botstein at Carnegie Hall. Additional engagements include concerts with Long Island Masterworks and Gregg Smith Singers. Max Jefferson (Carrie Kipling) is a Philadelphia-based soprano. A recent graduate of Westerminster Choir College with her Bachelor’s of Music in Voice Performance, Ms Jefferson is classically trained, with pursuits leading to performances throughout the United States and Italy. Ms. Jefferson has appeared as soprano soloist in OperaWork’s Arias in Motion and in both concert and staged excerpt as Fiodiligi in Mozart’s Cosi fan tutte, Cleopatra in Handel’s Giulio Cesare, Rezia in Haydn’s L’incontro improvviso, and Ellen Orford in Britten’s Peter Grimes. Most recently, she has been seen as La chauve-souris in Ravel’s L’enfant et les sortilèges, La Contessa in Giordano’s Mese Mariano, and Dido in staged excerpts from Purcell’s Dido and Anaeas at Miami Music Festival. Ms. Jefferson states that she is thrilled to be back singing with Ember, who she considers first choral family (then referred to as Schola), and from which she emerged as Schola’s youngest Choral Scholar. Daniel Byerly, tenor, (John Kipling) has built a vast opera, oratorio, and concert repertoire since earning a BA in Piano performance at Grove City College, PA,. Mr. Byerly performed a variety of roles with several companies, including New York Lyric Opera with whom he sang sections of four Mozart operas in his Lincoln Center debut in 2015, in addition to performing Don Ottavio in Mozart's Don Giovanni at The Dimenna Center. Mr. Byerly was recruited by Kyrenia Opera to sing in its December 2015 production of Menotti's Amahl and the Night Visitors. Additional work with Kyrenia included a March 2016 performance, where he sang alongside Stavros Siolas in a concert of Greek national music at the Kaufman Music Center, and a performance of
- 8 - the "Libiamo" from Verdi's La Traviata held at the University Club of New York. Most recently, Summer 2017 saw Dan debut the role of Demetrius in Grammercy Opera's realization of Purcell's The Fairy Queen, which music was interwoven with the drama of Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream". Mr. Byerly remains active in choral literature as well, and is an accomplished sight singer. He participates regularly as soloist and in ensemble with Congregation Shearith Israel, The Church of St. Agnes, and Church of the Blessed Sacrament in New York City; and with Covenant Presbyterian Church of Millburn and Short Hills, St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jersey City, as well as two years with Ember. He and his wife share a passion for church music and together they direct the choir at the aforementioned Covenant Presbyterian Church. Originally from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, he now resides in the New York metro area with his wife, three-year-old daughter, and one-year-old son.
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Ember – the vocal ensemble of Schola Cantorum on Hudson – is a proud member of the NY and NJ Choral Consortia
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EMBER SINGERS Mark Aro Kathleen Kelly Alison Self Susan Baer Gordon King Karen Lea Siegel Mark Blowers Stephan Kirchgraber Ilya Speranza Frank Borroto Sherry Kosinski Christopher Tefft Nathaniel Fletcher John Maderazo Svetlana Tzenova Erin Greenspan Frances Marsh Alexander Wentworth Laura Greenwald Amanda Regan Roger West C.J. Harden Caroline L. Sargent Anna Willson
Those singing today’s concert represent approximately half of the auditioned singers in the Ember Family. Each concert is uniquely balanced around singer availability and the needs of the music
Acknowledgements The works of Ember and its parent organization, Schola Cantorum on Hudson, are made possible in part by generous grants from The New Jersey Cultural Trust, The Marjorie Bunnell Charitable Fund, The Frank and Lydia Bergen Foundation and by funds from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, a partner agency of the National Endowment for the Arts.
We wish to express our deepest appreciation for the hospitality of our rehearsal venue: St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, Jersey City, NJ Rev. Jessica Lambert, Pastor, and Chris Greene, Music Director Special thanks to our gracious performing homes: St. John’s Lutheran Church, West Village, NYC The Rev. Mark E. Erson, Pastor, and Dr. Janet Chung, Director of Music and Church of the Immaculate Conception, Montclair, NJ The Rev. Joseph A. Scarangella, Pastor, and Preston Dribble, Music Director and St. John’s in the Village Episcopal Church, West Village, NYC The Rev. Gwyneth MacKenzie Murphy, Interim Pastor, and Gordon King, Organist and Choirmaster
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This program is made possible in part by funds from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, a partner agency of the National Endowment for the Arts.
Please silence all cell phones, pagers, watch alarms, and other electronic devices. Choral Artistry for the 21st Century! Please DO feel free to real-time Tweet, photograph, and share your live performance experience! The duration of the performance is approximately 2 hours. There will be a 10-minute intermission between Parts Three and Four of the program.
But Who Shall Return Us Our Children – A Kipling Passion (an oratorio by John Muehleisen)
Prelude P.1 – Bugle Calls: Reveille Brass P.2 – Hymn #1: Recessional Carrie, John, Rudyard, Choir, Percussion Part One – Family Portrait 1.1 – Recitative: John’s Birth Choir, Carrie, Rudyard, Percussion 1.2 – Duet: Lullaby for John Rudyard, Carrie, Orchestra 1.3 – Recitative: John’s Destiny - “My attention is at present taken Rudyard up…” 1.4 – Duet: John Grows Up Rudyard, Carrie, Orchestra 1.5 – Aria: If— Rudyard, Orchestra Part Two – The Gathering Storm 2.1 – Recitative: August 4, 1914 Choir, Carrie, Rudyard, Percussion
2.2 – Scena: At a recruiting rally Rudyard, Choir, Brass, Percussion (For All We Have and Are - 1914) 2.3 – Recitative: John’s Commission Choir, Carrie, Rudyard, Percussion 2.4 – Recitative: “…there is nothing else to do.” Carrie, Choir Women, Strings, Chimes 2.5 – Lament #1: “The young men of the world…” Choir, Orchestra 2.6 – Aria (Chaconne) + Recitative: Carrie’s Farewell – Son Choir, Carrie, John, Orchestra 2.7 – March #1: The Call Choir, Brass, Percussion 2.8– Chorale #1: The Send-Off Choir a cappella
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Part Three – The Battle of Loos
3.1 – Aria with Chorus: John Kipling’s Final Letter: Choir, John, Woodwinds, Percussion “Just a hurried line…” 3.2 – Soldiers’ Song #1: Bombed Last Night John, Trio of Soldiers, Percussion 3.3 – Aria with Chorus: Secret Music John, Choir, Orchestra 3.4 – Soldiers’ Song #2: Take Me Back to Dear Old Blighty Quartet of Soldiers 3.5 – Soldiers’ Song #3: Just Before the Battle, Mother John, Choir a cappella
3.6 – Chorale #2: Soldier’s Dream - “I dreamed kind Jesus Choir a cappella fouled the big gun gears…” 3.7 – Scena for Chorus + Tenor: The Attack (Over the Top) Chorus of Soldiers, John, Orchestra 3.8 – John’s Death John, Choir, Percussion 3.9 – Chorale #3: “The dead men lay on the shell-scarred plain…” Choir a cappella 3.10 – Interlude: “I knew a simple soldier boy…” Choir, Percussion 3.11 – Soldiers’ Song #4: The Old Barbed Wire Quartet of Soldiers 3.12 – Chorus with Recitative – “They shall not return to us…” Choir, Rudyard, Orchestra 3.13 – Choral Recitative: The Telegram Choir, Percussion 3.14 – Reprise: For All We Have and Are Choir, Carrie, Rudyard, Orchestra
— INTERMISSION —
Part Four – Lost & Found 4.1 – The Search for John Begins (1915) Rudyard, Carrie 4.2 – Carol and Recitative: A Nativity – “Is it well with the child?” Choir, Carrie, Orchestra 4.3 – The Search for John Continues (1916) Carrie, Rudyard
4.4 – Chorale #4: Advent, 1916 - “I dreamt last night Christ Choir a cappella came to earth again…” 4.5 – Recitative with Chorus: The Search for John Carrie, Oliver Baldwin, Choir, Percussion Concludes (1917) 4.6 – Soliloquy: The Question Rudyard 4.7 – Duet: Perhaps Carrie, Rudyard, Orchestra Part Five - Armistice & Aftermath 5.1 – Recitative with Chorus: The Armistice (Nov. 11, 1918) Choir, Carrie, Percussion 5.2 – March #2: Return of the Irish Guards Rudyard, Carrie, Choir, Winds, Brass, Percussion 5.3 – Hymn #3: Survivors Trio of Nurses 5.4 – Lament #2: The Children Choir, Percussion 5.5 – Interlude: Statistics Rudyard 5.6 – Waltz: Does It Matter? Choir, Orchestra
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5.7 – Recitative: John Officially Declared Dead Choir, Rudyard, Sergeant Corcoran, Percussion (June 10, 1919) Part Six – Reconciliation & Remembrance 6.1 – Lament #3: “All that they had they gave…” Choir, Carrie, Rudyard, Orchestra 6.2 – Recitative: “I have lost what I treasured most…” Rudyard, Percussion 6.3 – Scena: The Cenotaph (Nov. 11, 1919) Rudyard, Carrie, Choir, Orchestra 6.4 - Chorale #5: On Another’s Sorrow (“Can I see another’s woe?”) Choir a cappella 6.5 – Ode of Remembrance: For the Fallen Chorus of Dead Soldiers, Carrie, Rudyard, Choir, Percussion 6.6 – Aria: Epitaph – “Remember me…” John, Orchestra 6.7 – Closing Chorus: “I am the grass…” Choir, Orchestra 6.8 – Remembrance Tapestry: “We will remember them” John, Carrie, Rudyard, Choir, Orchestra
Soloists, Speakers and Ensembles: John Kipling ...... Daniel Byerly Rudyard Kipling ...... Justin Beck Carrie Kipling ...... Max Jefferson Oliver Baldwin ...... Stephan Kirchgraber Sergeant Corcoran ...... Christopher Tefft Quartet of Soldiers . . . Mark Aro, Nathaniel Fletcher, John Maderazo, Mark Blowers Trio of Nurses ...... Ilya Speranza, Anna Willson, C. J. Harden Soldiers/Families/Mourners/Choir ...... Ember Singers
Englewood Chamber Players:
Strings Woodwinds and Brass Violin 1 – Gabriel Schaff Flute/Clarinet/Saxophone – Christine MacDonnell Violin 2 – Lisa Steinberg Oboe/ English horn – Rita Mitsel Viola – Shelley Holland-Moritz Trumpet – Donald Batchelder Cello – Peter Sanders Trombone – Kenneth Finn Bass – Richard Sosinsky Percussion Percussion1 – James Musto Percussion2 – Simon Boyar
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But Who Shall Return Us Our Children – A Kipling Passion Libretto P.2 – Hymn #1: Recessional Carrie: Verse I. God of our fathers, known of old— John: Lord of our far-flung battle line— Rudyard: Beneath whose awful hand we hold Dominion over palm and pine— All Three: Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet, Lest we forget—lest we forget! Choir and Soloists: Verse II. Verse III. For [every] heart that puts her trust The tumult and the shouting dies— In reeking tube and iron shard— The Captains and the Kings depart— Far-called our navies melt away— Still stands Thine ancient sacrifice, On dune and headland sinks the fire— An humble and a contrite heart. Lo, all our pomp of yesterday Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet, Is one with Nineveh and Tyre! Lest we forget—lest we forget! Judge of the Nations, spare us yet, Lest we forget—lest we forget!
Amen. – Recessional by Rudyard Kipling 1.1 – Recitative: John’s Birth Choir: North End House Rottingdean, Sussex, England August 17, 1897 Carrie: “John born at 1.50am. Both well.” Rudyard: “My son John arrived on a warm August night of ’97, under what seemed every good omen.” - Carrie and Rudyard Kipling writing in Carrie’s diary on Aug. 17, 1897. Choir: December 22, 1897 Rudyard: “Here ends the 6th year of our life together. - In all ways the richest of the years to us two personally. 'She shall do him good and not evil all the days of her life'. Bless you my dear.” - Rudyard Kipling, writing in Carrie’s diary on Dec. 22, 1897, as was his habit. The biblical quote is Proverbs 31:12 1.2 – Duet: Lullaby for John Rudyard: “Reserved young person, John; but considerably better looking than he was two days ago.” - Rudyard Kipling’s Letters
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But Who Shall Return Us Our Children – A Kipling Passion Libretto, continued Duet: Lullaby for John – continued Carrie: This boy of mine shall be a man, And yet I hold him in my hands. Just days ago my son was born, His eyes have seen the light of morn. - from Lullaby for John by Tyler Griffin Rudyard: “John, the beetle-browed John does nothing but grunt and yawn. He is getting a shade more presentable and in a week or so will be fit to look at.” - Rudyard Kipling’s Letters Carrie: His hands are soft, his nose is red, His hair is strewn about his head. He suckles sweet from mother’s breast, And slumbers ‘pon my swollen chest. Carrie, Rudyard: This boy of mine shall be a man, And yet I hold him in my hands. Just days ago my son was born, His eyes have seen the light of morn. - from Lullaby for John by Tyler Griffin 1.3 – Recitative: John’s Destiny - “My attention is at present taken up…” Rudyard: “Dear Harding, [Regarding the torpedo boat destroyer] trials. My attention is at present taken up by one small craft recently launched from my own works – weight (approx) 8.957 lbs: h.p (indicated) 2.0464, consumption of fuel unrecorded but fresh supplies needed every 2 ½ hrs. The vessel at present needs at least 15 years for full completion but at the end of that time may be an efficient addition to the Navy, for which service it is intended. Date of launch Aug.17th 1.50 a.m. No casualties. Christened John. - Letter from Rudyard Kipling to W. J. Harding 1.4 – Duet: John Grows Up Rudyard: “He has ferocious eyebrows and doesn’t say grace before meals.” Carrie: He walks and talks, my babe has grown, Was ignorant, but now is known. Was hidden from the Earth so cruel, He’ll soon know well the way of fools. - from Lullaby for John by Tyler Griffin
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But Who Shall Return Us Our Children – A Kipling Passion Libretto, continued 1.5 – Aria: If— Rudyard: If you can keep your head when all about you If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue, Are losing theirs and blaming it on you, Or walk with Kings—nor lose the common If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you, touch, But make allowance for their doubting too; If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you, If you can wait and not be tired by waiting, If all men count with you, but none too much; Or being lied about, don’t deal in lies, If you can fill the unforgiving minute Or being hated, don’t give way to hating, With sixty seconds’ worth of distance run, And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise: Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it, And—which is more—you’ll be a Man, my son! - from If— by Rudyard Kipling 2.1 – Recitative: August 4, 1914 Choir: From the Daily Mirror, August 4th, 1914: “Germany has declared war on Belgium and invaded the country. The Germans have entered Belgium at three places.” “The following statement was issued from the Foreign Office last night: Owing to the summary rejection by the German Government of the request made by His Majesty's Government for assurances that the neutrality of Belgium would be respected, His Majesty's Ambassador in Berlin has received his passport, and His Majesty's Government has declared to the German Government that a state of war exists between Great Britain and Germany as from 11pm on August 4.” - Newspaper report from the Daily Mirror Carrie: “My cold possesses me.” - from Carrie Kipling’s diary for August 4, 1914 Rudyard: “Incidentally, Armageddon begins. England declared war on Germany.” - Rudyard’s entry in Carrie’s diary for August 4, 1914 2.2 – Scena: At A Recruiting Rally (For All We Have and Are - 1914) Rudyard: For all we have and are, There is nothing left to-day For all our children's fate, But steel and fire and stone! Stand up and take the war. Though all we knew depart, The Hun is at the gate! The old Commandments stand: -- Our world has passed away, "In courage keep your heart, In wantonness o'erthrown. In strength lift up your hand."
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But Who Shall Return Us Our Children – A Kipling Passion Libretto, continued Scena: – At A Recruiting Rally - continued Rudyard, Choir: Once more we hear the word No easy hope or lies That sickened earth of old: -- Shall bring us to our goal, "No law except the Sword But iron sacrifice Unsheathed and uncontrolled." Of body, will, and soul. Once more it knits mankind, There is but one task for all -- Once more the nations go One life for each to give. To meet and break and bind A crazed and driven foe. Rudyard: What stands if Freedom fall? Who dies if England live? - from For All We Have and Are by Rudyard Kipling 2.3 – Recitative: John’s Commission Choir: August 17, 1914 Carrie: “John’s 17th birthday. Rud takes him first to Hastings then to Maidstone [recruiting offices] about his commission, but they will not have him because of his eyes. He talks of enlisting.” - CK’s Diary: Aug. 17, 1914 Choir: August 28 Rudyard: “John is trying very hard to get a commission, but as he is only seventeen and his eyes are not what they should be, it is somewhat difficult.” - RK letter to Julia Depew: Aug. 28, 1914 Choir: September 10 Carrie: “With the greatest difficulty Rudyard was persuaded to meet Lord Roberts at Irish Guards HQ about a commission for John. The Colonel says John is to report at once for duty.” - CK’s Diary: Sept. 10, 1914 Choir: September 11 Carrie: “John orders his uniform” - CK’s Diary: Sept. 11, 1914 Rudyard: “John goes off in a day or two to join his battalion at Warley [Barracks] in Essex and – the rest is as God shall dispose.” - RK letter to Frank N. Doubleday (his publisher), Sept. 11, 1914 Choir: September 14 Carrie: “We sent John away yesterday to his new life with outward good spirits and inward misery, but it must be born and after all every mother I know has had to do the same.” - CK letter to her mother, Sept. 14, 1914
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But Who Shall Return Us Our Children – A Kipling Passion Libretto, continued 2.4 – Recitative: “…there is nothing else to do.” Choir: From Carrie Kipling, August 6, 1915 Carrie: “Dear Mother: You write you don’t see where one finds the courage to send a boy but there is nothing else to do. The world must be saved from the Germans…One can’t let one’s friends’ and neighbours’ sons be killed in order to save us and our son. There is no chance John will survive unless he is so maimed from a wound as to be unfit to fight. We know it and he does. We all know it but we all must give and do what we can and live in the shadow of a hope that our boy will be the one to escape.” - from Carrie Kipling's letter to her mother, dated Sept. 14, 1914 2.5 – Lament #1: “The young men of the world…” Choir: The young men of the world They no longer inherit the earth: Are condemned to death. The earth inherits them. They have been called up to die They are no longer the masters of fire: For the crime of their fathers. Fire is their master; They serve him, he destroys them. The young men of the world, They no longer rule the waters: The growing, the ripening fruit, The genius of the seas Have been torn from their branches, Has invented a new monster, While the memory of the blossom And they fly from its teeth. Is sweet in women's hearts; They no longer breathe freely: They have been cast for a cruel purpose The genius of the air Into the mashing-press and furnace. Has contrived a new terror The young men of the world That rends them into pieces. Look into each other's eyes, The young men of the world And read there the same words: Are encompassed with death Not yet! Not yet! He is all about them But soon perhaps, and perhaps certain. In a circle of fire and bayonets. The young men of the world Weep, weep, o women, No longer possess the road: And old men break your hearts. The road possesses them. – Lament by F.S. Flint (1885–1960)
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But Who Shall Return Us Our Children – A Kipling Passion Libretto, continued
2.6 – Aria (Chaconne) + Recitative: Carrie’s Farewell: Son Choir: From Carrie Kipling’s Diary: August 15, 1915, Carrie: “John off to Warley [Barracks] at noon. Looks very smart and brave and straight and young as he turns at the top of the stairs to say:” John: “Send my love to Daddo.” Carrie: Aria: He hurried away, young heart of joy, under our Devon sky! And I watched him go, my beautiful boy, and a weary woman was I. For my hair is grey, and his was gold; he'd the best of his life to live; And I'd loved him so, and I'm old, I'm old; and he's all I had to give. Ah yes, he was proud and swift and gay, but oh how my eyes were dim! With the sun in his heart he went away, but he took the sun with him. For look! How the leaves are falling now, and the winter won't be long. . . . Oh boy, my boy with the sunny brow, and the lips of love and of song! Recitative: How we used to sit at the day's sweet end, we two by the firelight's gleam, And we'd drift to the Valley of Let's Pretend, on the beautiful river of Dream. Oh dear little heart! All wealth untold would I gladly, gladly pay Could I just for a moment closely hold that golden head to my grey. - from Son by Robert Service Aria (da capo): He's gone. I do not understand. I only know That as he turned to go And waved his hand In his young eyes a sudden glory shone: And I was dazzled by a sunset glow, And he was gone. – The Going (To The Memory of Rupert Brooke) by Wilfrid Wilson Gibson (1878-1962)
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But Who Shall Return Us Our Children – A Kipling Passion Libretto, continued 2.7 – March #1: The Call Chorus of Soldiers: Far and near, high and clear, Chimney-sweeper and fop o' the town, Hark to the call of War! Into the pot and be melted down: Over the gorse and the golden dells, Into the pot of War! Ringing and swinging of clamorous bells, Women all, hear the call, Praying and saying of wild farewells: The pitiless call of War! War! War! War! Look your last on your dearest ones, Prince and page, sot and sage, Brothers and husbands, fathers, sons: Hark to the roar of War! Swift they go to the ravenous guns, Poet, professor and circus clown, The gluttonous guns of War. - from The Call by Robert Service (France, August first, 1914)
2.8– Chorale #1: The Send-Off Choir: Down the close, dark’ning lanes they sang their way To the siding-shed, And lined the train with faces grimly gay. Their breasts were stuck all white with wreath and spray As men's are, dead. So secretly, like wrongs hushed-up, they went. They were not ours: We never heard to which front these were sent. Nor there if they yet mock what women meant Who gave them flowers. Shall they return to beatings of great bells In wild trainloads? A few, a few, too few for drums and yells, May creep back, silent, to still village wells Up half-known roads. - from The Send-Off by Wilfred Owen sung to “Christus, der uns selig macht” #15 from Bach St. John Passion
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But Who Shall Return Us Our Children – A Kipling Passion Libretto, continued 3.1 – Aria with Chorus: John Kipling’s Final Letter: “Just a hurried line…” Choir: From John Kipling on September 25, 1915, at the Battle of Loos.
John: Just a hurried line as we start off tonight. The front-line trenches are nine miles off from here so it won’t be a very long march. This is the GREAT effort to break through & end the war. The guns have been going deafeningly all day, without a single stop. We have to push through at all costs so we won’t have much time in the trenches, which is great luck. Funny to think one will be in the thick of it tomorrow. One’s first experience of shell fire not in the trenches but in the open. This is one of the advantages of a Flying Division; you have to keep moving. We marched 18 miles last night in the pouring wet. It came down in sheets steadily. They are staking a tremendous lot on this great advancing movement as if it succeeds the war won’t go on for long. You have no idea what enormous issues depend on the next few days. This will be my last letter most likely for some time as we won’t get any time for writing this next week, but I will try & send Field post cards. Well so long dears. Dear love John. 3.2 – Soldiers’ Song #1: Bombed Last Night John (gradually joined by others below): Bombed last night, and bombed the night before, Gonna get bombed tonight, if we never get bombed any more. John + Another Soldier: When we’re bombed, we’re scared as we can be, Can’t stop the bombing sent from higher Germany. John + All Soldiers: They’re over us, they’re over us, One shell hole for just the four of us. Thank your lucky stars there are no more of us, 'Cause one of us could fill it all alone. Gassed last night, and gassed the night before, Gonna get gassed tonight, if we never get gassed anymore. When we’re gassed, we’re as sick as we can be, 'Cause Phosgene and Mustard Gas is much too much for me.
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But Who Shall Return Us Our Children – A Kipling Passion Libretto, continued Soldiers’ Song #1: Bombed Last Night – continued John + All Soldiers (continued): They're warning us, they're warning us, One respirator for the four of us. Thank your lucky stars that three of us can run, So one of us can use it all alone. Shelled last night, and shelled the night before, We're gonna get shelled tonight, if we never get shelled anymore. When we're shelled, we're windy as we can be God stop the shelling by our Field Artillery. They're warning us, they're warning us, One tin hat between the four of us. Soon there won’t be any more of us Only the tin hat all alone. - Traditional WWI Soldier’s Song sung in the trenches
3.3 – Aria with Chorus: Secret Music John: I keep such music in my brain My life that on the gloom can read No din this side of death can quell; Proud-surging melodies of joy. Glory exulting over pain, To the world’s end I went, and found And beauty, garlanded in hell. Death in his carnival of glare; My dreaming spirit will not heed But in my torment I was crowned, The roar of guns that would destroy And music dawned above despair. - Secret Music by Siegfried Sassoon Choir: MUSIC of whispering trees John: O bear me safe through dark, you low-voiced streams. Hushed by a broad-winged breeze I have no need to pray Where shaken water gleams; That fear may pass away; And evening radiance falling I scorn the growl and rumble of the fight With reedy bird-notes calling. That summons me from…
Choir: …cool John: O river of stars and shadows, lead me through the Silence of marsh and pool night. And yellow lilies islanded in light - Before the Battle by Siegfried Sassoon (June 25th, 1916)
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But Who Shall Return Us Our Children – A Kipling Passion Libretto, continued 3.4 – Soldiers’ Song #2: Take Me Back to Dear Old Blighty Quartet of Soldiers: Take me back to dear old Blighty! Put me on the train for London town! Take me over there, Drop me ANYWHERE, Liverpool, Leeds, or Birmingham, well, I don't care! I should love to see my best girl, Cuddling up again we soon should be, Oh! Tiddley iddley ighty, Hurry me home to Blighty, Blighty is the place for me! - Music Hall song by Arthur J. Mills, Fred Godfrey and Bennett Scott 3.5 – Soldiers’ Song #3: Just Before the Battle, Mother John: Just before the battle, mother, Tell the traitors all around you I am thinking most of you, That their cruel words we know, While upon the field we’re watching In every battle kill our soldiers With the enemy in view. By the help they give the foe. Comrades brave are ’round me lying, Hark! I hear the bugles sounding, Filled with thoughts of home and God ’Tis the signal for the fight, For well they know that on the morrow, Now, may God protect us, mother, Some will sleep beneath the sod. As He ever does the right. CHORUS: Farewell, mother, you may never Hear the “Battle-Cry of Freedom,” Press me to your heart again, How it swells upon the air, But, oh, you’ll not forget me, mother, Oh, yes, we’ll rally’round the standard, If I’m numbered with the slain. Or we’ll perish nobly there. Oh, I long to see you, mother, CHORUS: Farewell, mother, you may never And the loving ones at home, Press me to your heart again, But I’ll never leave our banner, But, oh, you’ll not forget me, mother, Till in honor I can come. If I’m numbered with the slain. - Traditional Civil War song (words and music by George F. Root)
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But Who Shall Return Us Our Children – A Kipling Passion Libretto, continued 3.6 – Chorale #2: Soldier’s Dream - “I dreamed kind Jesus fouled the big gun gears…” Choir: I dreamed kind Jesus fouled the big-gun gears; And caused a permanent stoppage in all bolts; And buckled with a smile Mausers and Colts; And rusted every bayonet with His tears. And there were no more bombs, of ours or Theirs, Not even an old flint-lock, nor even pikel. But God was vexed, and gave all power to Michael; And when I woke he’d seen to our repairs. - Soldier’s Dream by Wilfred Owen Sung to “Wie wunderbarlich,” #46 from Bach St. Matthew Passion
3.7 – Scena for Chorus + Tenor: The Attack (Over the Top)
Chorus of Soldiers: Ten more minutes!– Say yer prayers, Every word I've ever said Read yer Bibles, pass the rum! Seems a-shouting in my head. Ten more minutes! Strike me dumb, Three. Larst night a little star 'Ow they creeps on unawares, Fairly shook up in the sky, Those blooming minutes. Nine. It's queer, Didn't like the lullaby I'm sorter stunned. It ain't with fear! Rattled by the dogs of War. Eight. It's like as if a frog Funny thing – that star all white Waddled round in your inside, Saw old Blighty, too, larst night. Cold as ice-blocks, straddle wide, Two. I ain't ashamed o' prayers, Tired o' waiting. Where's the grog? They're wishes sent ter God Seven. I'll play yer pitch and toss – Bits o' plants from bloody sod Six. – I wins, and tails yer loss. Trailing up His golden stairs. 'Nother minute sprinted by Ninety seconds – Well, who cares! 'Fore I knowed it; only Four One – (Break 'em into seconds) more No fife, no blare, no drum 'Twixt us and Eternity. - Over the Top by Sybil Bristowe
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But Who Shall Return Us Our Children – A Kipling Passion Libretto, continued Scena: The Attack (Over the Top) – continued John: "Not long, boys, now." Time! Time! How's time? Soon now. I hear my whistle shriek I lift a silent hand. Unseen I bless Between teeth set, Those hearts will follow me. I fling an arm up, The whistle's twixt my lips…. Scramble up the grime The pale wrist-watch…. Over the parapet! The quiet hand ticks on amid the din. - from The Assault by Robert Nichols (1893–1944) John and Chorus of Soldiers: Over the Top Over the Top Over the Top – to Kingdom Come! - Over the Top by Sybil Bristowe
3.8 – John’s Death John: ‘Oh! Jesus Christ! I’m hit,’… Choir: …he said; and died. – from The Last Laugh by Wilfred Owen Lost in a blurred confusion of yells and groans... Down, and down, and down, he sank and drowned, Bleeding to death. The counter-attack had failed. – from Counter-Attack by Siegfried Sassoon
3.9 – Chorale #3: “The dead men lay on the shell-scarred plain…” Choir: The dead men lay on the shell-scarred plain, Where death and the autumn held their reign Like banded ghosts in the heavens grey The smoke of the conflict died away. The boys whom I knew and loved were dead, Where war's grim annals were writ in red, In the town of Loos in the morning. - Back at Loos by Patrick MacGill (1889–1963) sung to “Christus, der uns selig macht” #15 from Bach St. John Passion
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But Who Shall Return Us Our Children – A Kipling Passion Libretto, continued 3.10 – Interlude: “I knew a simple soldier boy…” Choir: I knew a simple soldier boy Who grinned at life in empty joy, Slept soundly through the lonesome dark, And whistled early with the lark. In winter trenches, cowed and glum, With crumps and lice and lack of rum, He put a bullet through his brain. No one spoke of him again. You smug-faced crowds with kindling eye Who cheer when soldier lads march by, Sneak home and pray you'll never know The hell where youth and laughter go. - Suicide in the Trenches by Siegfried Sassoon 3.11 – Soldiers’ Song #4: The Old Barbed Wire Quartet of Soldiers: If you want to find the General, I know where he is, I know where he is, I know where he is. If you want to find the General, I know where he is, He's pinning another medal on his chest. I saw him, I saw him, pinning another medal on his chest, I saw him, pinning another medal on his chest. If you want to find the Colonel, I know where he is, I know where he is, I know where he is. If you want to find the Colonel, I know where he is, He's sitting in comfort stuffing his bloody gut. I saw him, I saw him, sitting in comfort stuffing his bloody gut, I saw him, sitting in comfort stuffing his bloody gut. If you want to find the Sergeant, I know where he is, I know where he is, I know where he is. If you want to find the Sergeant, I know where he is, He's drinking all the Company rum. I saw him, I saw him, drinking all the Company rum, I saw him, drinking all the Company rum.
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But Who Shall Return Us Our Children – A Kipling Passion Libretto, continued Soldiers’ Song #4: The Old Barbed Wire – continued Quartet of Soldiers (continued): If you want to find the Private, I know where he is, I know where he is, I know where he is. If you want to find the Private, I know where he is, He's hangin’ on the old barbed wire. I saw him, I saw him, hangin’ on the old barbed wire, I saw him, hangin’ on the old barbed wire, hangin’ on the old barbed wire, hangin’ on the old…. - Traditional WWI soldier’s song. Tune: The British Grenadiers 3.12 – Chorus with Recitative – “They shall not return to us…” Choir of Soldiers’ Families: THEY shall not return to us, the resolute, the young, The eager and whole-hearted whom we gave: Rudyard: But the men who left them thriftily to die in their own dung, Shall they come with years and honor to the grave? Choir of Soldiers’ Families: They shall not return to us; the strong men coldly slain In sight of help denied from day to day: Rudyard: But the men who edged their agonies and chid them in their pain, Are they too strong and wise to put away? Choir of Soldiers’ Families: Our dead shall not return to us while Day and Night divide– Never while the bars of sunset hold. Rudyard: But the idle-minded overlings who quibbled while they died, Shall they thrust for high employments as of old? - from Mesopotamia (1917) by Rudyard Kipling Choir of Dead Soldiers: If any question why we died, Tell them, because our fathers lied. - from Epitaphs of the War by Rudyard Kipling
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But Who Shall Return Us Our Children – A Kipling Passion Libretto, continued 3.13 – Choral Recitative: The Telegram Choir: Name and Address of Sender: NO. 2 INFANTRY Received by: CENTRAL TELEGRAPH OFFICE 2.36 PM OCTOBER 2nd, 1915 MRS C KIPLING & MR R KIPLING - BATEMENS, BURWASH, SUSSEX REGRET TO REPORT YOUR SON JOHN KIPLING 2nd LIEUT. 879553 IS MISSING, PRESUMED INJURED, ON WAR SERVICE LETTER FOLLOWS - ARMY FORM B. 237 - 54" Signed: W.W. Haig - text of a telegram from the War Office to the Kiplings 3.14 – Reprise: For All We Have and Are Choir: There is but one task for all -- No easy hope or lies One life for each to give. Shall bring us to our goal, Carrie, Rudyard: But iron sacrifice What stands if Freedom fall? Of body, will, and soul. Who dies if England live?
- from For All We Have and Are by Rudyard Kipling
— INTERMISSION —
4.1 – The Search for John Begins (1915) Rudyard (Spoken): November 12, 1915 “Our boy was reported ‘wounded and missing’ since September 27th – the battle of Loos and we’ve heard nothing official since that date. But all we can pick up from the men points to the fact that he is dead and probably wiped out by shell fire.
However, he had his heart’s desire and he didn’t have a long time in the trenches. He was a senior ensign tho’ only 18 years and 6 weeks…It was a short life. I’m sorry that all the years’ work ended in that afternoon but – lots of people are in our position and it’s something to have bred a man. The wife is standing it wonderfully tho’ she of course clings to the bare hope of his being a prisoner. I’ve seen what shells can do and I don’t.” – Letter from Rudyard Kipling to Colonel Lionel Charles Dunsterville, 12 November 1915
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But Who Shall Return Us Our Children – A Kipling Passion Libretto, continued
The Search for John Begins – continued Carrie (Spoken): “We must always keep a window open to hope, since so many officers have turned up after even a year of absence – but as the weeks go by our anxiety – always with us, becomes very heavy. If he met his death fighting for all the things we hold to be of value, we are honoured through him, and though our sorrow is no less, yet we realize he only did what many many Englishmen have done and are prepared to do, and his loss, though so great a thing to us is a little thing to set against the greater.” - Carrie Kipling’s response to a letter of condolence, Autumn 1915
4.2 – Carol and Recitative: A Nativity – “Is it well with the child?” Choir: from Carrie Kipling’s diary on December Twenty-Fifth, Nineteen-Fifteen: Carrie: “Christmas Day…but to us a name only. We give no presents and in no way consider the day, John not being with us.” Choir: The Babe was laid in the Manger Carrie: ‘But it was not so with mine, Between the gentle kine — (With mine! With mine!) All safe from cold and danger — ‘Is it well with the child, is it well?’
Choir: The waiting mother prayed. Carrie: ‘For I know not how he fell, And I know not where he is laid.’
Choir: A Star stood forth in Heaven; Carrie: ‘But there comes no sign to me. The Watchers ran to see (To me! To me!) The Sign of the Promise given -- ‘My child died in the dark. Is it well with the child, is it well? There was none to tend him or mark, And I know not how he fell.’
Choir: The Cross was raised on high; Carrie: ‘But the Mother saw Him die The Mother grieved beside -- And took Him when He died. (He died! He died!) ‘Is it well, is it well with the child? For I know not where he is laid. Ah, who will answer my word?’
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But Who Shall Return Us Our Children – A Kipling Passion Libretto, continued A Nativity – continued Choir: The broken mother prayed. Choir: The Star stands forth in Heaven. The watchers watch in vain For a Sign of the Promise given Of peace on Earth again— (Again! Again!) Carrie: ‘Is it well with the child—is it well?’
– from A Nativity by Rudyard Kipling. Music for the carol text (in italics) adapted from The Babe in Beth’lem’s Manger Laid (Traditional Carol) 4.3 – The Search for John Continues (1916) Carrie (Spoken): February 1916 “We have seen and heard from over 20 wounded 2nd Battalion men now and we are more at sea than ever. They all agree he was wounded, severely wounded, some…say killed but we have not found the man who was near him; he was killed perhaps too.” - Letter from Carrie Kipling to Lady Edward Cecil, February 1916 Rudyard (Spoken): A letter to the War Office, September 18, 1916 “I should be glad if you would postpone taking the course you suggested in [concluding that] my son Lieutenant John Kipling [is dead]. All the information I have gathered is to the effect that he was wounded and left behind near Puits (“Pwee”) 14 at the Battle of Loos on September 27th, 1915. I have interviewed a great many people and heard from many others, and can find no one who saw him killed.” - Rudyard Kipling’s letter to the War Office on September 18, 1916 4.4 – Chorale #4: Advent, 1916 - “I dreamt last night Christ came to earth again…” Choir: I dreamt last night Christ came to earth again To bless His own. My soul from place to place On her dream-quest sped, seeking for His face Through temple and town and lovely land, in vain. Then came I to a place where death and pain Had made of God's sweet world a waste forlorn, With shattered trees and meadows gashed and torn, Where the grim trenches scarred the shell-sheared plain.
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But Who Shall Return Us Our Children – A Kipling Passion Libretto, continued Chorale #4: Advent 1916 – continued Choir: And through that Golgotha of blood and clay, Where watchers cursed the sick dawn, heavy-eyed, There (in my dream) Christ passed upon His way, Where His cross marks their nameless graves who died Slain for the world's salvation where all day For others' sake strong men are crucified. - Advent, 1916 by Eva Dobell (1876–1963) sung to “Wie wunderbarlich,” #46 from Bach St. Matthew Passion 4.5 – Recitative with Chorus: The Search for John Concludes (1917) Carrie (Spoken): October 4, 1917 “[We received] a letter from [Rud’s nephew] Oliver Baldwin, who has talked to an Irish Guards Sergeant…who says what four others of John’s platoon have said: Oliver Baldwin (Spoken): “This is his story: Apparently in the heat of the advance on the 27th, Sergeant Farrell found four or five men and John trying to capture the farm building we have heard such a lot about. The men were at the door and John was calmly emptying his revolver into the 12 Huns and machine gun that were in the house. As Sergeant Farrell came up, John was hit through the temple and fell back into his arms. Farrell bound up his head as best he could. John was quite quiet, his eyes were closed. The Irish retired, Farrell carried John back with them. He placed him in a shell-hole and saw he was dead. Sergeant Farrell further adds that he was probably killed instantaneously. However, he never suffered and was probably buried by a shell afterwards. Farrell seems very clear about it all. It seems to clear a lot up, doesn’t it?” [Sergeant Farrell also stated that that he would never have left John alone in the shell hole were he not convinced that he was dead and] “beyond any further help.” - Letter from Oliver Baldwin to Rudyard Kipling , October 1917 Carrie: '[John] fell as he'd have wished,'… Choir: …the mother said, And folded up the letter that she'd read. Carrie: [Oliver] writes so nicely.' Choir: Something broke In the tired voice that quivered to a choke. She half looked up.
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But Who Shall Return Us Our Children – A Kipling Passion Libretto, continued Recitative with Chorus: The Search for John Concludes – continued Carrie: 'We mothers are so proud Of our dead soldiers.' Choir: Then her face was bowed. …her weak eyes Had shone with gentle triumph, brimmed with joy, Because he'd been so brave, her glorious boy. - From The Hero by Siegfried Sassoon, 1917 Choir: From Carrie Kipling’s Diary on December 12, 1917 Carrie: “(Rud to London. Sergeant Farrell convinces him that John was shot through the head and carried to a shellhole at 6.30 on 27 Sep. on the left of Chalkpit Wood.)” Choir: December 25 (1917)
Carrie: “A few presents for Elsie but no others. One is thankful to have this day over. To me, since John left us, the most difficult of the year.” - from Carrie Kipling’s Diary
4.6 – Soliloquy: The Question Rudyard (Spoken): Brethren, how shall it fare with me That they did not ask me to draw the sword When the war is laid aside, When they stood to endure their lot -- If it be proven that I am he That they only looked to me for a word, For whom a world has died? And I answered I knew them not? If it be proven that all my good, If it be found, when the battle clears, And the greater good I will make, Their death has set me free, Were purchased me by a multitude Then how shall I live with myself through the years Who suffered for my sake? Which they have bought for me? That I was delivered by mere mankind Brethren, how must it fare with me, Vowed to one sacrifice, Or how am I justified, And not, as I hold them, battle-blind, If it be proven that I am he But dying with open eyes? For whom mankind has died -- If it be proven that I am he Who, being questioned, denied? - Rudyard Kipling
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But Who Shall Return Us Our Children – A Kipling Passion Libretto, continued 4.7 – Duet: Perhaps Carrie, Rudyard: Perhaps some day the sun will shine again, And I shall see that still the skies are blue, And feel once more I do not live in vain, Although bereft of You. Carrie: Rudyard: Perhaps the golden meadows at my feet Perhaps the summer woods will shimmer bright, Will make the sunny hours of spring seem gay, And crimson roses once again be fair, And I shall find the white May-blossoms sweet, And autumn harvest fields a rich delight, Though You have passed away. Although You are not there. Carrie, Rudyard: Perhaps some day I shall not shrink in pain But though kind Time may many joys renew, To see the passing of the dying year, There is one greatest joy I shall not know And listen to Christmas songs again, Again, because my heart for loss of You Although You cannot hear. Was broken, long ago. - Perhaps by Vera Brittain 5.1 – Recitative with Chorus: The Armistice (Nov. 11, 1918) Choir: From Carrie Kipling’s Diary, November 11, 1918 Carrie: “A quite beautiful day. We are all waiting for news of the armistice.” Choir: November 12 Carrie: “The great news comes. We know it first by hearing the church bells at Brightling and later from our church.” - from Carrie Kipling’s Diary, Nov. 11–12, 1918 Choir: And there was a great Calm. From Heaven distilled a clemency; There was peace on earth, and silence in the sky; Some could, some could not, shake off misery: The Sinister Spirit sneered: "It had to be!" And the Spirit of Pity whispered, "Why?" - from ‘And There Was a Great Calm’ (on the Signing of the Armistice, 11 Nov. 1918) by Thomas Hardy Choir: November 13 Carrie: “Rud and I feel as never before what it means, now the war is over, to face the world to be remade without a son.” - from Carrie Kipling’s Diary, Nov. 13, 1918
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But Who Shall Return Us Our Children – A Kipling Passion Libretto, continued 5.2 – March #2: Return of the Irish Guards Rudyard (Spoken): “In the spring of ’19 came the release, and the return of the [Irish] Guards to England, and, on a grey March day, the Division, for the last time, was massed and moved through London, their wounded accompanying them on foot or in the crowded lorries.” - from The Irish Guards in the Great War, Vol. 2: The 2nd Battalion by Rudyard Kipling Carrie (Spoken): [We saw the Guards Division,] “8 thousand strong who [were] marching past the King and through the city and so back 8 miles in all. The Irish Guards [were] quite splendid. It is the last tribute. How proud John would have been to have marched with his Regiment.” - Letter from Carrie Kipling Choir: The cruel war was over -- oh, the triumph was so sweet! We watched the troops returning, through our tears; There was triumph, triumph, triumph down the scarlet glittering street, And you scarce could hear the music for the cheers. And you scarce could see the house-tops for the flags that flew between; The bells were pealing madly to the sky; And everyone was shouting for the Soldiers of the Queen, And the glory of an age was passing by. - from The March of the Dead by Robert Service sung to the Funeral March from Handel’s oratorio Saul
Rudyard (Spoken): “And, as they moved...one saw, here and there among the wounded,…young men with eyes which did not match their age, shaken beyond speech or tears by the splendour and the grief of that memory.” - from The Irish Guards in the Great War, Vol. 2: The 2nd Battalion by Rudyard Kipling
Choir They were coming, gaunt and ghastly, sad and slow; They were coming, all the crimson wrecks of pride; With faces seared, and cheeks red smeared, and haunting eyes of woe, And clotted holes the khaki couldn’t hide. Oh, the clammy brow of anguish! the livid, foam-flecked lips! The reeling ranks of ruin swept along! The limb that trailed, the hand that failed, the bloody finger tips! And oh, the dreary rhythm of their song! - from The March of the Dead by Robert Service
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But Who Shall Return Us Our Children – A Kipling Passion Libretto, continued
5.3 – Hymn #3: Survivors Trio of Nurses: NO doubt they’ll soon get well; the shock and strain Have caused their stammering, disconnected talk. Of course they’re ‘longing to go out again,’— These boys with old, scared faces, learning to walk. They’ll soon forget their haunted nights; their cowed Subjection to the ghosts of friends who died,— Their dreams that drip with murder; and they’ll be proud Of glorious war that shatter’d all their pride... Men who went out to battle, grim and glad; Children, with eyes that hate you, broken and mad.
NO doubt they’ll soon get well; they’re ‘longing to go out again,’— These Children, with eyes that hate you, broken and mad. - Survivors by Siegfried Sassoon (Craiglockart. October, 1917) sung to the Hymn tune, The Church’s One Foundation 5.4 – Lament #2: The Children Choir: THESE were our children who died for our lands: they were dear in our sight. We have only the memory left of their home treasured sayings and laughter. The price of our loss shall be paid to our hands, not another's hereafter. That is our right. But who shall return us the children?
They bought us anew with their blood, forbearing to blame us, They believed us and perished for it. Our statecraft, our learning Delivered them bound to the Pit and alive to the burning Not since her birth has our Earth seen such worth loosed upon her!
Nor was their agony brief, or once only imposed on them. The wounded, the war-spent, the sick received no exemption: Being cured they returned and endured and achieved our redemption, Hopeless themselves of relief, till Death, marveling, closed on them.
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But Who Shall Return Us Our Children – A Kipling Passion Libretto, continued Lament #2: The Children That flesh we had nursed from the first in all cleanness was given To corruption unveiled and assailed by the malice of Heaven - By the heart-shaking jests of Decay where it lolled on the wires To be blanched or gay-painted by fumes - to be cindered by fires - To be senselessly tossed and retossed in stale mutilation From crater to crater. For this we shall take expiation. But who shall return us our children? - from The Children by Rudyard Kipling 5.5 – Interlude: Statistics Rudyard: “I AM UNFORTUNATELY a producer of fiction; but outside office-hours, I plead guilty to an interest in facts. Will you allow me just to run through a few facts which may be of interest to our England of to-day? “Great Britain’s quota of dead in the War was over eight hundred thousand when the books were closed in 1921 or 1922. It would be within the mark to say that three-quarters of a million of these were English. Furthermore, a large but unknown number died in the next few years from wounds or disease directly due to the war. There is a third category of men —incapacitated…by the effects of shock, gassing, tubercle and the like. These carry a high death-rate because many of them burned out half a life’s vitality in three or four years. They, too, have ceased to count.” - from a speech titled An Undefended Island by Rudyard Kipling given to The Royal Society of St George at the Connaught Rooms, London on 6 May 1935 5.6 – Waltz: Does It Matter? Men: Does it matter?—losing your legs?... For people will always be kind, And you need not show that you mind When others come in after hunting To gobble their muffins and eggs. Women: Does it matter?—losing your sight?... There’s such splendid work for the blind; And people will always be kind, As you sit on the terrace remembering And turning your face to the light. All: Do they matter—those dreams from the pit?... You can drink and forget and be glad, And people won't say that you’re mad; For they know that you've fought for your country And no one will worry a bit.
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But Who Shall Return Us Our Children – A Kipling Passion Libretto, continued Waltz: Does It Matter? – continued Men: Does it matter? Women: Does it matter? Men: Does it matter? Women: Does it matter? Men: losing your legs?... Women: losing you sight?... Men: losing your legs?... Women: losing you sight?... All: For they know that you've fought for your country And no one will worry a bit. - Does It Matter? by Siegfried Sassoon (Craiglockhart, 1917) 5.7 – Recitative: John Officially Declared Dead (June 10, 1919) Choir: From Rudyard Kipling to Herbert Smith, Goss, King & Gregory, Solicitors. April 30, 1919 Rudyard: “The search in Germany for missing men has not revealed any trace of [John]…Please issue a certificate evidencing this. Choir: From Sergeant J. A. Corcoran of the War Office on June 10, 1919 Sergeant Corcoran (Spoken): “[In view of] the length of time that lapsed since the Officer was officially reported missing” and “the fact that his name has not appeared in any list of prisoners of war received from the German Government, the Army council are regretfully constrained to conclude, for official purposes, that Lieutenant Kipling is dead, and that his death occurred on, or since, the 27th day of September, 1915.” Choir: “…his body was never identified.” From John Kipling’s Record of Service: “Death accepted for official purposes, 27 September 1915” Date of Birth: Rudyard: 17th of August, 1897 Choir: Height: Rudyard: Five feet, Six-and-a-half inches. Choir: Name and Address of nearest relative (stating relationship): Rudyard: Rudyard Kipling, Batemans / Burwash / Sussex (Father)
6.1 – Lament #3: “All that they had they gave…” Choir: All that they had they gave—they gave; and they shall not return, For these are those that have no grave where any heart may mourn. Rudyard, Carrie: Father and mother they put aside, and the nearer love also— An hundred thousand men that died whose graves shall no man know. - from The King’s Pilgrimage by Rudyard Kipling
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But Who Shall Return Us Our Children – A Kipling Passion Libretto, continued Lament #3: “All that they had they gave…” – continued Choir: Some there be, which have no memorial; who are perished, as though they had never been; and are become as though they had never been born; But these were merciful men, whose righteousness hath not been forgotten. Their glory shall not be blotted out. Their bodies are buried in peace; but their name liveth for evermore. - Ecclesiasticus (Wisdom of Sirach) 44: 9-10, 14 Choir, Rudyard, Carrie: All that they had they gave—they gave; and they shall not return, For these are those that have no grave where any heart may mourn. - from The King’s Pilgrimage by Rudyard Kipling 6.2 – Recitative: “I have lost what I treasured most…” Rudyard: “I have lost what I treasured most on earth, but I can only fold my hands and bow my head. When I look round and see what others have suffered I am silent.” - Letter from Rudyard Kipling to Major-General L.C. Dunsterville, 6.3 – Scena: The Cenotaph (Nov. 11, 1919) Rudyard: When you come to London Town, Choir: (Grieving—grieving!) Rudyard: Bring your flowers and lay them down At the place of grieving. Rudyard + Carrie: When you come to London Town, Choir: (Grieving—grieving!) Rudyard + Carrie: Bow your head and mourn your own, With the others grieving. Rudyard + Choir Bass; Carrie + Choir Soprano: For those minutes, let it wake Choir: (Grieving—grieving!) Rudyard + Choir Bass; Carrie + Choir Soprano: All the empty-heart and ache That is not cured by grieving.
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But Who Shall Return Us Our Children – A Kipling Passion Libretto, continued Scena: The Cenotaph – continued Rudyard, Choir Tenor, Choir Bass + Carrie, Choir Soprano, Choir Alto For those minutes, tell no lie: Choir: (Grieving—grieving!) Rudyard, Choir Tenor, Choir Bass + Carrie, Choir Soprano, Choir Alto “Grave, this is thy victory; And the sting of death is grieving.” Rudyard, 2 Choir Tenors, 2 Choir Basses + Carrie, 2 Choir Sopranos, 2 Choir Altos Where’s our help, from Earth or Heaven. Choir: (Grieving—grieving!) Rudyard, 2 Choir Tenors, 2 Choir Basses + Carrie, 2 Choir Sopranos, 2 Choir Altos To comfort us for what we’ve given, And only gained the grieving? Rudyard + Carrie + All Choir Heaven’s too far and Earth too near, (Grieving—grieving!) But our neighbor’s standing here, Grieving as we’re grieving. What’s his burden every day? (Grieving—grieving!) Nothing man can count or weigh, But loss and love’s own grieving. What is the tie betwixt us two (Grieving—grieving!) That must last our whole lives through? “As I suffer, so do you.” That may ease the grieving. - London Stone by Rudyard Kipling 6.4 - Chorale #5: On Another’s Sorrow (“Can I see another’s woe?”) Women: Can I see another’s woe, And not be in sorrow too? Can I see another’s grief, And not seek for kind relief?
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But Who Shall Return Us Our Children – A Kipling Passion Libretto, continued Chorale #5: On Another’s Sorrow – continued Men: Can I see a falling tear, And not feel my sorrow’s share? Can a father see his child Weep, nor be with sorrow fill’d? Women: Can a mother sit and hear An infant groan an infant fear? Choir: No, no! never can it be! Never, never can it be! He doth give his joy to all; He becomes an infant small; He becomes a man of woe; He doth feel the sorrow too. Think not thou canst sigh a sigh And thy maker is not by; Think not thou canst weep a tear And thy maker is not near. O! he gives to us his joy That our grief he may destroy; Till our grief is fled & gone He doth sit by us and moan. – On Another’s Sorrow (William Blake), sung to “Jesus meine Freude” from Bach Motet, BWV 227 and the chorale “Ein Feste Burg” 6.5 – Ode of Remembrance: For the Fallen Chorus of Mourners: With proud thanksgiving, a mother for her children, England mourns for her dead across the sea. Flesh of her flesh they were, spirit of her spirit, Fallen in the cause of the free. Chorus of Dead Soldiers: When you go home, tell them of us and say: For your tomorrow, we gave our today. – Kohima Epitaph (John Maxwell Edmonds – 1875–1958)
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But Who Shall Return Us Our Children – A Kipling Passion Libretto, continued Ode of Remembrance: For the Fallen – continued Carrie: They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old: Rudyard: Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn. Carrie: At the going down of the sun… Rudyard: …and in the morning, Together: We will remember them. Chorus of Mourners: We will remember them. - from For the Fallen (1914) by Laurence Binyon (1869–1943)
6.6 – Aria: Epitaph – “Remember me…” John: Remember me when I am gone away, Gone far away into the silent land; When you can no more hold me by the hand, Nor I half turn to go yet turning stay. Remember me when no more day by day You tell me of our future that you plann'd: Only remember me; you understand It will be late to counsel then or pray. Yet if you should forget me for a while And afterwards remember, do not grieve: For if the darkness and corruption leave A vestige of the thoughts that once I had, Better by far you should forget and smile Than that you should remember and be sad. - Remember by Christina Rossetti ASK not how it came I died Whom no power on earth could save, Who speaks to you from the grave. Ask not whom the grass overgrows… - from Epitaph by Robert Nichols (1914)
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But Who Shall Return Us Our Children – A Kipling Passion Libretto, continued 6.7 – Closing Chorus: “I am the grass…” Choir: Pile the bodies high at Austerlitz and Waterloo. Shovel them under and let me work— I am the grass; I cover all.
And pile them high at Gettysburg And pile them high at Ypres and Verdun. Shovel them under and let me work. Two years, ten years, and passengers ask the conductor: What place is this? Where are we now?
I am the grass. Let me work. – Grass by Carl Sandburg (1919) 6.8 – Remembrance Tapestry: “We will remember them” John: Remember me when I am gone away, Gone far away into the silent land; – from Remember by Christina Rossetti Carrie, Rudyard: “Their Name Liveth For Evermore” – Ecclesiasticus (Wisdom of Sirach) 44: 14b “We will remember them” – from For the Fallen (Laurence Binyon) Semi-Chorus #1: “Lest we forget— lest we forget” – from Recessional by Rudyard Kipling “We will remember them” Semi-Chorus #2: “All that they had they gave— they gave; and they shall not return.” - from The King’s Pilgrimage by Rudyard Kipling “We will remember them” Semi-Chorus #3: “Their Glory Shall Not Be Blotted Out” - Ecclesiasticus (Wisdom of Sirach) 44: 13b “We will remember them” Semi-Chorus #4: “We will remember them” Semi-Chorus #5: “We will remember them”
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Ember Veterans Task Force Update:
Tune into Ember Chat Focusing on Veterans and Family of Veterans Military Veterans and their families are the focus of this concert cycle, running from November 2017 – November 2018.
Ember’s special Veterans Task Force, initiated for this season concerts, is focused on bringing visibility to the full human impact of war, and what heightened forms of awareness and assistance are needed for healing. One result of this team’s efforts is the launch of our “Ember Chat” podcast series through SoundCloud. Through EmberChat we will be broadcasting in-depth recorded conversations and interviews, intended to bring attention to war’s impact from the numerous perspectives of society, especially veterans and their families. Tune in to our first broadcast, which is an insightful interview with, John Muehleisen, the composer, himself, of the work we performed today. An engaging conversation that is worth a listen. Install the SoundCloud app on your computer or device and search for EmberChat, then click/tap on the John Muehleisen episode dated November 3, 2017.
To find out more about Ember’s Veteran’s Task Force, including ways you might be able to take part in its initiatives, please feel free to contact us: [email protected]
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Join Ember in December
For a Special Holiday Season Offering
On December 17, 2017 Ember departs briefly from its year-long focus for a special, single-concert interactive family holiday experience in the heart of Montclair, NJ, filled with seasonal favorites. Children, in particular, are welcome, and will be given a special role in the seasonal sing.
Ember Holiday Season Concert Sunday, December 17, 2017 5:00pm Church of the Immaculate Conception, 30 N Fullerton Ave, Montclair , NJ
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Deborah Simpkin King, PhD, is a visionary conductor, new music advocate and educator who deeply believes in the power of music to affect the human spirit and enrich communities. Recognized for her innovative choral programming that incorporates new ways of making music more accessible, Dr. King’s passion for the human element in all music is what informs every aspect of her work as an artist and leader in the music industry. Dr. King is the Founder and Artistic Director of Ember, the vocal ensemble of Schola Cantorum on Hudson (Schola), a non-profit pro- am choral/vocal ensemble that performs in New York City and Montclair, New Jersey. She provides the ensemble’s creative programming--a high quality, eclectic, stylistic mix of new music with a relevant social message. Under her stewardship, Schola has acquired a devoted following that has come to expect the unexpected from the group’s dynamic performances. Schola is the parent organization of Dr. King’s renowned brainchild, PROJECT : ENCORE™, an international advocacy initiative that promotes post-premiere performances of new music. She is well known for her many premiere and post-premiere ("encore") performances of new choral music. Dr. King is the Interim Director of Music at Crescent Avenue Presbyterian Church, Plainfield, NJ, and Artistic Director of the church-sponsored Crescent Concerts Series, a multi-disciplinary presentation of vocal, instrumental, choral and orchestral music events for the residents of Plainfield and the surrounding communities. In this capacity she conducts the Crescent Choral Society and the Crescent Singers. Prior to her position at Crescent Avenue Presbyterian Church, Dr. King served in a variety of musical capacities for Episcopal, Presbyterian and Community churches. A leader in the choral community, Dr. King serves as Chair of the New York Choral Consortium (NYCC) and the Co-Coordinator of the NJ-ACDA HS Choral Festival, having served as Coordinator since 1994. She has also been on faculty of a variety of university campuses, recently serving as Interim Director of Choral Activities at William Paterson University. Dr. King, who frequently serves as a guest conductor, was one of five conductors chosen to work with Simon Halsey in the 2016 premiere preparation and performance of David Lang’s new commission, the public domain calling for 1000 voices, in celebration of the 50-year anniversary of Lincoln Center’s Mostly Mozart Festival. A sought-after teacher, Dr. King conducts master classes and choral workshops as well as private conducting and studio voice lessons. Her PhD is in Musicology, and she holds an MMus in Music Education/Choral conducting and a BMus in Vocal Performance. Kevin Shoemaker, Ember’s Collaborative Accompanist, is a New York City musician whose award-winning work includes original music, choral music, film scores, dance accompaniment, street performance, and more. He has been featured in the New York Post and WQXR and has played at venues including Carnegie Hall and Symphony Space. Kevin also works as a Collaborative Pianist with the Mark Morris Dance Group. He has attended Westminster Choir College, Berklee College of Music, University of Miami, the International Keyboard Institute and Festival, and the New York Youth Symphony Chamber Music Program. Kevin writes and performs in a variety of musical styles and forms, from electronic music and hip-hop to jazz and ballet, making him a truly versatile and unique talent.
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Board of Directors Mark Aro and Susan Baer, Co-Chairpersons Gordon King, Chair Emeritus Richard Seeger, Treasurer Tully Cheng, Alyson Brown Navarrro, Alexander Wentworth Associate Board Members: James Splond, Amanda Regan, Secretary
Artistic and Executive Staff Deborah Simpkin King, PhD, Artistic Director and Founder Wayne Eastwood, Webmaster Kevin Shoemaker, Collaborative Accompanist Arielle Sypa, PROJECT : ENCORE™ Director of Operations Christopher Greene, Grant Writer
Support Staff Kathleen Engles, Public Relations Consultant Mark Aro, Promotions Manager, Publications Manager Karen Lea Siegel, Advisor to Publications Wayne Eastwood, New Music Initiative Coordinator Lynn Ho, Box Office Coordinator Alyson Brown Navarrro, SoundCloud Manager Caroline L. Sargent, Development Advisor Susan Baer, Singer-Membership Coordinator Alyson Brown Navarrro, Branding and Marketing Consultant
“Like” us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/EmberEnsemble/ Follow us on Twitter: @EmberEnsemble Sign up to have Ember news delivered to your inbox at scholaonhudson.org
Ember is committed to accommodating audience members with disabilities whenever possible. If you require special assistance on the day of the concert, please contact us and every effort will be made to assist you.
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Thank You to the following for their generous Gala and Giving Tree contributions to our 2017 Musical Gala Erica & Chuck Appel Rajbir S. Kadyan Alison & Chris Self Mark A. Aro Gordon King Karen Lea Siegel Susan Baer & Warren Usdin Sherry Kosinski Peggy Simpkin Michele Butchko Kevin & Sally Malanga Cecille & Errol Simpson George Cermak Frances Marsh John L. Smith Ilya Speranza & Andy Squire Maureen deBlasio Joseph Martin-Stowe James Splond Wladimir Giszpenc Alyson Navarro Jose & Rowena Traverso Suzanne Block Glatt Joyce Nestle Svetlana Tzenova Julius Gottila Leslie M. Penny Barbara G. Weiland Christopher Greene Scott & Angel Pollack André Weker Laura Greenwald Elizabeth Rake Alexander Wentworth Dorie P. Jefferson Amanda Regan Roger & Mary Lou West Andrew P. Jones Caroline L. Sargent Amy Miles Ziebarth Richard Seeger Thanks also to: Kevin Shoemaker for providing his musical talents, the staff at the Highlawn Pavillion, Alyson Brown Navarro, Gala chair, and Gala consultants Caroline L. Sargent and Alison Self
Schola Choral Arts and YOU? Our Core Belief: Music has a unique power to affect the human heart and soul, inviting each of us to become fully aware, mindful individuals.
Our Core Mission: Schola Cantorum on Husdon is committed to excellence in all facets of its artistry and human interaction through…
Innovative programming and performance designed to touch lives (performances by Ember) Leadership through promotion and performance of new choral music (PROJECT : ENCORE!) Vibrant creative engagement with young artists (collaborative performances with Cantorum Young Singers (“CYS”), and Phoenix Singers) Does the notion of contributing to the nurturing of these life values sound intriguing to you? Each of Schola’s three branches of activity—Performance; Education/Engagement; New Music Advocacy—thrives on visionary leadership and, of course, funding. If you have an interest in any or all of these areas, we’d like to talk with you about what your involvement could look like, as a possible leader and/or funder for our mission. [email protected] 888-407-6002, or seek us out after the concert
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Ember is the performance ensemble of Schola Cantorum on Hudson.
We look forward to sharing more events in our year-long season honoring military veterans;
2018 | March 3 (NYC) and 4 (Montclair) Where Poppies Grow. Continuing the World War I theme, Ember’s March 2018 concert will feature music and poetry from all of the countries involved in World War I. Settings of the popular World War I poem, “In Flanders’ Field,” will punctuate dreams of peace and expressions of devastation from all the nations involved in the Great War.
2018 | May 19 (NYC) and 20 (Montclair) Safe for Democracy. In this final concert of the season, we focus on the disenfranchised American soldier. During World War I, thousands of African-American and Native American men responded to the call to serve in the army of a country that still denied them even the most basic rights. The concert looks at this societal conundrum, exploring poetry and music from the Harlem Renaissance through the 21st century. 2018-2019 | Sneak Peek to Next Season We have never before continued a full-season theme across the summer, into the following season, but will do so with our November 2018 (also Veterans’ Day weekend, and the actual centennial anniversary of the Armistice!) concert, the first concert in the 2018-19 season entitled Coming of Age, focusing of issues surrounding aging. In November 2018 we will focus on stories of elderly veterans.
Artwork on front cover and season banner on back cover created by Fusion Creative - www.fusioncreative.com Ember logo created by Gulla Design - www.gulladesign.com Special Thanks to Alyson Brown Navarro for her collaborative and visionary contributions to Ember’s branding efforts.
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